the Bloomi: Rebecca Story talks startup funding, clean intimate care, and much more

At last month’s BeautyX Summit here in New York City, CEO and founder Rebecca Story spoke on a panel about Fundraising as a Woman of Color. In her video interview with Cosmetics Design, she shares key takeaways as well as insight into how she’s addressing other challenges her new sexual wellness ecommerce site faces.

“We are the first e-marketplace that focuses in this space; that’s pretty revolutionary. We focus on intimate care items,”​ explains Rebecca Story, founder and CEO of the Bloomi.

“Everything is screened for toxic ingredients,” ​she tells Cosmetics Design, noting that “we screen thousands of items and only about 2% make it onto the marketplace.” ​

the Bloomi is building a community of engaged consumers but Story is having to find creative workarounds to reach them.

Story, like many entrepreneurial women of color, is also getting creative about fundraising. Recapping the BeautyX panel on that topic she points out that “It’s a very disproportionate rate of funding that goes to Latinas and Black women.”​

Watch the full video interview about to learn how Story and her industry peers are meeting the challenge of raising capital for beauty and personal care startups.

(The full BeautyX Summit panel on Fundraising as a Woman of Color comprised: Alisa Williams, senior associate at VMG Partners, as moderator; and Deepti Chauhan, Executive Director at Citigroup; Bridgette Howard, founder of Parlor West Ventures; KJ Miller, co-founder and co-CEO of Mented Cosmetics; and Rebecca Story, founder and CEO of the Bloomi as panelists.)

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Deanna Utroske, CosmeticsDesign.com Editor, covers beauty business news in the Americas region and publishes the weekly Indie Beauty Profile column, showcasing the inspiring work of entrepreneurs and innovative brands.